Broken Immortality
by Kalera I. McTierney
Summary: Ten years after their deaths, Lord Voldermort and Bellatrix Lestrange live separate, tortured lives in Hell. When the two are forced to come together again, a hidden secret will come to the light and a most remarkable choice will be made. LV/BL.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: None of the Harry Potter characters are my property. Only the plot of this story belongs to me. The HP universe belongs to J.K. Rowling (thank goodness, she wrote the books…she's relieved me out of hours of boredom) and is distributed by Scholastic Press, a division of Scholastic Inc, here in the United States. Since I have taken the time to write this disclaimer, there is no reason anyone should feel the need to sue me.

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**A/N**: _This story was born from the result of me taking a writing break from my now AU seventh year fic "Shattered Illusions." For those that would read both this one and "Illusions", I had decided that I wanted to write additional chapters for it it before I post more chapters for it. The story is **not** discontinued...I will finish it, sooner or later._

_This story is also the result of my boyfriend asking about why there is such a lack of Voldermort/ Bellatrix fics out there, compared to other pairings in the HP universe. I couldn't give him a decent answer, so I decided to write one. It's out of my element but I can, at least, give it a good shot. Here's for you, baby!_

_This story is meant to only encompass three chapters, at the most and is canon – compliant as of Deathly Hallows, disregarding some of the Epilogue. Oh, yes…it is rated M for a reason. I didn't want to get ahead of myself and write some raunchy scene with the story a T or lower rating and forget to change it. So for now, it stays at M. _

_Please read and give any constructive criticism, if you feel as though it is needed. Thanks._

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"**Broken Immortality"**

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_There was Pain… there was Darkness._

_There was Redemption…there was Light._

_I had been Broken…I couldn't be made Whole._

_How could I bring back the Pieces?_

_Of_

_My Life._

_My Soul._

_No one really Knows._

_My Knowledge, Though…_

_I will become One._

_Once my time is Done._

_-- B.W, 2008_

Pathetic, isn't it?

I have spent the last ten years down here, listening to the screams of the Fallen all around me. It was a tortured existence…one even I couldn't have thought of in my wildest imaginings. Death had always been my worst fear…my greatest enemy, and here I was, constantly reliving it over and over again. I could do nothing to stave it off…couldn't sleep, couldn't eat…all I could do was just stare into the unrelenting darkness and wish…and just wish that I could just fade away.

I was born Tom Marvolo Riddle…born to a weak witch of a mother and a pathetic excuse of a Muggle father. I spent the better part of my life running…ashamed of my blood…ashamed of whom I was. As I grew older, I became more powerful…more dangerous and anxious to revel in my own power. I took on the name of Lord Voldermort, and met my downfall in a scrawny little boy. There is no point in thinking about what I could have done differently, back then. All I know is that I waited, patiently… years for my next chance to destroy my greatest enemy.

What happened? I was defeated again.

My arrogance and my conceit got the best of me and now here, I am, chained to a wall…weak, defenseless and powerless. My followers…my Death Eaters… surely, they had been rounded up and tossed into Azkaban for life, if not already down here with me. I couldn't think about that, though. I had lost everything, because of that foolish boy. I couldn't truly acknowledge the fact that I had been bested.

I have to find some way to get break free.

Unlikely, isn't it?

A loud, creaky sound jerked me out of my thoughts and I shivered, as I heard…more, like _felt_ something move around me. This was hardly uncommon. Sometimes, something slimy and cold would slither through my legs, sinking its fangs into areas I would rather not mention; other times, something dry and hot would settle across my nose and mouth, cutting off precious air, and making me thrash and fight for my forsaken life. It wasn't as though I could die again. It was a rather effective scare tactic…and I could only close my eyes and wait for the torture to begin once more.

"Riddle?"

I opened my eyes at once at that unforgivable name and peered through the darkness once more, only to see nothing as usual. This was a first; hearing a human voice. It had to be nothing good, and I decided to refrain from saying anything in answer. I didn't want to give whomever this entity was, any ammunition against to use against me. Foolish of me, wasn't it? I was already in Hell…what could they possibly use against me?

"Riddle?"

Still, I didn't say a word.

The entity let out a low sigh, almost as if he were amused. "Fine, if you're in the mood to play games, I'll be glad to oblige you."

I heard a muttered whisper, felt a blast of wind whipping around me, and then, it hit me. In mere seconds, my skin felt like it was on fire…it felt as though it was sliding away in pieces. I couldn't breathe…my lungs felt like they were disintegrating into ash. My arms were snapped, clean off of my sockets…my legs were bent the opposite of which they were supposed to go.

There was cackling laughter all around me…there were even more sharp stabs of pain as various sharp objects flew and impaled me further against the wall. I tried to scream…tried desperately to make my presence known, but then…the choked gasp was immediately cut off by what felt like a stake implanting itself in the middle of my throat. My eyes rolled back into my head, and I began to shudder.

My final death was imminent.

I was finally going to be free.

"Stop."

At once, the wind dissipated and there was nothing but silence for a moment. I could feel the blood pulsing out from the wound in my throat and the deep gorges in my skin were harsh, in their righteous fury. I was in unrelenting pain but hey, I was in Hell…there was going to be no release for me. I was the chosen one for their new brand of torture…I should have known that they were going to use me for practice sooner or later. There was no time here, in the official sense of the word…I could be tortured for what seemed like days, weeks or even years without pause. It was an unbearable thought.

"I guess you want to listen, now."

I could only gurgle, blood spilling out of my mouth and down my chin. The entity laughed. "Good."

There was a clap and all of a sudden, blinding light. I closed my eyes against its brilliance and hoped that this wasn't some other form of torture. I was too terrified to open my eyes…yes, I, Lord Voldermort, didn't want to open my own eyes. Having been held captive for so long, I knew it had be a normal reaction…there was no way I wanted to see what was going to kill me; I knew that there was no way that I could escape it. Yes, it would have been better to die in the darkness.

"I can't believe that you were supposed to be the one that everyone feared. I think not…what a coward you turned out to be. I expected you to last a lot longer than you did," the entity said, a low and lazy tone evident in his voice. "Well, I guess it was my mistake. Would you just open your eyes, you cowardly fool?"

Not anxious to be brutalized anymore than I had already been, I opened my eyes to peer around my surroundings. It appeared as thought I was chained, high off of the ground, in a large oval room made of rock. I wasn't the only occupant; there were several other beings chained against walls, also. It was also obvious that they had been there way longer than I had been; most of them were at the skeletal stage, and logically, truly dead. I had the nastiest feeling, though, that they were alive; trapped in a decaying body of their own making. If I had the strength to shiver at that moment, I would have.

"If you are done looking around, I would suggest that you bring your attention to me."

Hastily, I looked down upon the figure. He was standing below me in the middle of a pathway that had roaring fire on either side of it and staring at me. He waved a hand and a blast of steam billowed from the fire and washed over my body, causing me to wish that I could cry out in pain. I didn't know who he was, nor what he wanted with me but at the rate he was going, I wasn't all that anxious to find out.

"Let me introduce myself," the man said, in a loud, clear tone, "my name is Lucifer. I am the Morning Star and I rule over this merry place that you call Hell. You wouldn't know much about me…but that is purely irrelevant, at this point. I have come to you for a reason; I require your assistance, regarding the wizarding world from which you came to me."

I couldn't help but grow deathly still. He needed my assistance with the wizarding world? For what purpose?

"At first, I thought I would show some manners and ask nicely," he said, folding his hands across his chest and floating into the air only to hover in front of me, "but then, I thought about it and I realized that with a snap of my fingers, I could make you wish that you never existed. This is not a request, Riddle…I require your expertise."

He was almost inhuman in his angelic beauty…large black wings and all. Tall and muscular, he stared at me though dark eyes that bespoke of the millennia that he had spent torturing the souls that the misfortune of coming down here. There was something truly dangerous about one who knew he had nothing to lose…truly dangerous about one who reveled in others' pain and misery. He wasn't only the personification of evil…he was evil, itself.

A fresh wave of pain washed over me as he reached out and brushed a finger against my broken skin. Oh, yes…he reveled in our collective misery. It gave him strength…it gave him his power. A crooked smile crossed his face yet again as he conjured up a knife and pointed it at my genitals. My eyes could only slide closed as I waited, for whatever hand that cruel Fate must have dealt me.

My eyes flew open and I gurgled when I felt a sharp pain stab me in the general vicinity. He smiled, lazily brushing his black hair behind his ear. "Oh, do you want to know for what purpose do I need you?" He laughed, reaching out and shoving the stake even deeper into my throat, "That for me to know and you to find out. You will help me, Riddle…you don't have much of a choice. Even you can't be foolish enough to disobey me…"

"I'll send for you when you are needed." Lucifer said, smirking evilly as he continued to hover in front of me. "Oh, yes…rest easy and don't let the demons bite. They don't get nearly enough fresh blood in their diets. It's rather sad, actually."

With another clap, there was darkness yet again and moments later, there was a loud, creaky sound, signaling his departure. I could only peer through the darkness once more and wonder about his purpose for me. Did he plan to stage some attack on the wizarding world? If that was the case, what in the hell did he need me for? I had obviously failed at my plans for world domination. Maybe, he just needed an inside eye for something? I could, at least serve him in that purpose.

All I could do was wait...

Either for my death.

Or…

My redemption.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer**: None of the Harry Potter characters are my property. Only the plot of this story belongs to me. The HP universe belongs to J.K. Rowling (thank goodness, she wrote the books…she's relieved me out of hours of boredom) and is distributed by Scholastic Press, a division of Scholastic Inc. , at least here in the United States. Since I have taken the time to write this disclaimer, there is no reason that I should be sued.

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**A/N**: _Here's the second chapter of 'Broken Immortality'. I really hope that I will be able to post the final chapter to this story next month. Double thanks to __**the-purple-black **__and __**xoxLewrahxox**__ for your reviews and thanks to everyone who had added this story to their Alert or Favorite Story lists. I really appreciate it._

_As usual, feel free to give constructive criticism. Thanks for reading._

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"**Broken Immortality"**

"It's time."

Before I could even draw the energy to move in reaction to the sudden voice, I felt something cold and slimy press a hand to my scarred, tender flesh. At first, nothing happened and then, horrendous pain engulfed my entire body. I couldn't scream…I could barely move against it… and then suddenly, it stopped. I slumped against my bonds, wishing with everything that I had that the unconsciousness that I could feel beckoning for me would just take me under.

"Bring him down and put this over his eyes. He's isn't going to fight us. He has no means to."

The shackles holding my hands and feet against the wall released and before I could crash to the stone floor in a broken heap, two sets of arms wrapped around me. I was under no illusions; these were probably two of Lucifer's servants and as promised, I was to be brought to him. As the three of us floated to the ground and my eyes were covered with way more force than was actually needed, I still couldn't bring myself to wonder what he wanted with me. I was finally glad to be free…even if it wasn't everything that I had hoped for.

"There's no need for him to be conscious." The hissing, reptilian voice muttered with no small amount of glee.

I let out a brief sigh of submission and resignation for what was to come; one moment later, I felt a hard blow against my face vicious enough to knock out what little teeth I had left and blood to drip from my mouth. With at least another three blows, a slimy tongue licking along the length of my cheek, and cackling laughter vibrating in my head, I finally slipped over the edge in blissful blankness.

When I finally came to, the first things I registered was a cold stone floor digging in my face from underneath me and of silence. My eyes were still covered by the cloth while my rest of my body seemed to be free of any constraints. Of course, that alarmed me; I had spent so long held captive that I wasn't even sure that my limbs knew the concept of moving under their own volition any longer. Wherever I was, I didn't want to take the chance of getting injured once more. So there I stayed, afraid to move…letting the fear of the unknown overpower me.

Eventually, the sheer fact of not knowing what was going to happen to me began to get the best of me. Hesitantly, I moved my toes and flexed my feet, flinching internally as though I was expecting more pain. When nothing happened, I grew more and more bold…moving my legs and then shifting my arms…always expecting that something would go horribly wrong. Bracing my hands underneath me, I climbed to my feet, stumbling slightly, and pulled the cloth away from my eyes.

It seemed as though I was standing in some circular room. As with the place where I had been held at, there was a large door in front of me and a roaring fire going around the circumference of the room. I turned around, and to my surprise, there was only a full – length mirror behind me. I had no interest of seeing what I looked like, flesh torn apart…bone peeking through, but again, my damnable pride got the best of me and I stumbled to the mirror, undeniable anxious.

If this was to be more punishment…then I must admit, it was one that could destroy a person. I looked whole; not a scratch, gash, or any other injury to be seen on my face. My eyes, so dark with former promises of vengeance and destruction, merely looked back at me with such a lifeless glint to them that I wanted to flinch. My hair…hair that been ripped from my scalp chunk by terrifying chunk, fanned out along my shoulders, long, thick and rich. I reached out and traced the angles of my face…hesitant and disbelieving…before dropping down and tracing along the smooth contours of my chest…

"I see you've discovered the pleasures of the mirror…"

Before I could turn around, I felt myself being snatched across the room and being ceremoniously slammed into a chair. Metal chains wrapped themselves securely around my hands and feet and years of being tortured quickly made me grow still, rather than struggle mightily like I so dearly wanted to. Taking a breath to calm my nerves, I quickly pasted a look of mild disdain upon my face and looked up at the man of the hour.

My captor…my tormentor, Lucifer.

He walked in, escorted by two human looking guards. Even though they didn't visibly appear to be all that concerned about my presence, I knew better. With a crooked smile settling on his face, he looked back at two other people seeming to drag something heavy into the room. The minute I caught sight of a slender arm, dragging along the floor…I was hit with the knowledge that it was a body. The men dropped the obviously female body, which had the whole face covered, in front of Lucifer, bowed, and walked out without a word.

I merely looked at it, fear closing my throat. What was this? What was this supposed to mean? He must get off on torturing me…he just kept looking between me and the body with a shred, calculating look in his eyes. I wouldn't be the one to break…I couldn't be the one to break…but the longer he kept doing it, the more I wanted to scream in rage, in despair. The emotions that I didn't even know that I could feel anymore threatened to overwhelm me and I closed my eyes for mere seconds, hoping that I wouldn't cry out in my despair.

Lucifer waved a hand over the body and with a jerk, a small hazy black ball of light came out of the still – motionless body and began hovering right in front of him. He studied it intently for a moment as it rotated; almost as if he were reassuring himself that it was something that he needed. He looked at me, once more, almost as if he were daring me to say something. To my credit, I didn't let any emotion cross my face as I looked back at him…at least, until he waved a hand once more. My vision blurred and a loud groan of pain escaped my own lips as an even darker ball of light with an almost purple band around it came out of my body and floated over to him, only to do the same rotation as the first one.

"Yes, this will do nicely." Lucifer muttered to himself before looking back at me. "Do you know what these are, Riddle?"

I shook my head, still feeling the pain from the departure of whatever he had taken away from me. I looked down upon myself; I still looked as whole as I did when I looked into that mirror…I could feel nothing different from within me. "You have yet to inform me of why you wanted my presence here. There is no point in wondering about anything that you say or do to me. I'm at your mercy." I muttered, in a soft tone.

Lucifer scowled. "You really are weak. How you managed to be torture the whole of the wizarding world for as long as you did is something that I will never quite understand. But that is of no concern to me at this moment."

"For your information, these hovering balls of light are magical cores…the essence of what made you … well, you. When you and the body before me died in your world, for some asinine reason, these weren't taken away as I thought they would be. To me, they had nothing whatsoever to do with your souls but as time went on and their presence didn't disappear, I eventually realized that they did. At the time, there was no point in taking it away from you. You're in my domain…the power that you had in your world doesn't work here."

I was silent as I processed this. The knowledge that the whole time I had been down here, I still retained my magical abilities was remarkable. The knowledge that they were dormant mainly because I was dead tempered my joy in a way. With my conflicting emotions, I couldn't quite find something reasonable intelligent to say so I blurted out the first thing on my mind. "Why do you need magical cores now?"

"You would be surprised at how many of your brethren end up down here." Lucifer muttered. "I had my pick of the whole lot of you. But your magical core and hers," he kicked the body softly," yes, the both of yours are special to me. The mayhem and misery that these two cores hold … they will do especially well for my purposes. It's not as though you will need them down here…."

"So you're going to tell me of their future purpose?" I asked, softly.

"You were raised in a Muggle orphanage, were you not? I'm sure you've heard of religion and its place in their world. You're not as dumb as you're trying to act right now. "Lucifer walked over to me, put a hand under my chin and made me look at him. " You know of what I have to do…what I will reclaim as my own."

I looked up into those dark eyes and with a rush of recollection and instinctive knowledge, the truth sunk into my brain. " Armageddon? The end of the world? It's time for your he-."

A smile crossed his face. "My heir will be born of magical blood. No human will be able to stop them and since the heavens are forbidden to interfere, they will have no clue of my choices or my decisions…"

A glimmer of hope flickered to life deep inside of me. "You're sending my essence back to the surface? I will be reborn again?"

A short bark of laughter erupted out of the man, his black wings retracting only to fold close against his back. "Who said that I was sending you? I have multiple magical cores in my possession. There is a choice to be made on my part…"

Even with that remark, hope flamed deep within me. He needed an heir on the surface…he needed someone to do his work so that he would be able to rule the heavens. My chance to go back and exact my revenge on the plight of my existence was within my reach. I would finally be able to destroy Harry Potter and just maybe, just maybe take my place as the true power of the wizarding world. My hands clenched against my sides as I sunk deep in my thoughts, plotting and planning on how I would be able to gain this honor. I would do anything I had to do…anything to go back and fix the horrid wrong that had tore apart my plans…

"I sense that you're getting ahead of yourself, Riddle." Lucifer muttered, turning away only to focus his attention on the body before him.

I snapped out of my thoughts at that, trying to regain control over myself. My hope could just as easily be used as a weakness against me. Slapping a disinterested smirk upon my face, I closed off my thoughts to the best of my abilities and merely looked at him. "Whomever you send back … mudblood, half – blood, or pureblood? Each would have its own fair share of weaknesses and advantages."

"For me to know and whomever I send to find out." Lucifer said, kicking the body once more. "Since I'm sure you have gotten the essence of my plans, I may as well reintroduce you to this fine lady before me. Her secret is also vitally important to my plan. I thought that it would be best for her to tell you directly instead of me delivering the news. More painful that way…"

He waved a hand once more and the woman jerked back to life with a soft gasp. Just like I had done, she grew deathly still as if she had expected something to come and attack her at any moment but her curiosity must have gotten the best of her. Her hood and her loose, black hair shielding her face from my view, she pushed herself to her feet, only to stumble slightly. Extending one large wing, Lucifer merely watched impassively as she grabbed it in order to regain her balance.

"Reveal yourself, woman." Lucifer hissed.

With not a word spoken, the woman reached up and pushed back the hood. If it were possible for me to actually stop breathing, I would have. There was no way I would lose my chance for freedom, to exact my revenge against the Chosen One, to…

"Bellatrix Lestrange."

We merely stared at each other for a moment. She looked no different than the last time I had seen her….when she was fighting against the 'blood traitor' matriarch of the Weasley clan. The insanity and the pride she had inherited from the Black side of her family had cost her dearly. She wasn't really paying attention like she should have when a luckily aimed spell from the idiotic woman, one that Bella could probably deflect in her sleep, hit her directly in the heart, forever snuffing out her brilliant mind. At that moment, when she fell, I will not deny that it hurt me. Surprised that a man who had split his soul into seven by killing people with no remorse would feel anything at the death of a mere woman?

It did.

And now, she was standing before me…an unwelcome obstacle in achieving my deepest wish. As much as I cared for her… I had no problems in destroying her if she dared to stand in my way. I would be the one to go back…there could be no other option…

"My Lord?" she breathed out, taking a hesitant step toward me. Before I could even say a word in edgewise, there was another flash of movement and Bella clutched at her throat, trying to staunch the gush of blood that had suddenly erupted from her throat. She dropped to her knees, her eyes wide in terror that I thought I would never see in her eyes, as the blood continued to gush between her fingers. We were already dead…there was no chance she would die again but the sight of it was enough to turn my stomach. Lucifer stepped toward her, eyes flashing, and reached out and brushed a hand against the side of her face.

She pulled a hand from her throat, a choked wail trying to escape from her severed vocal cords. To my horror, when Lucifer pulled his hand away, I realized that he had burned the side of his face that his hand had been…third – degree burns from the look of it. The Black beauty of which she was prideful of but didn't take much heed of was forever ruined. As much as I wanted to protest at her torture, I knew better. I couldn't ruin my chance to go back…even for my beautiful, loyal lieutenant…

"I didn't bring you here for a loving reunion, woman." Lucifer said, jerking her head toward him. "Tell him your secret. The times is growing near…and believe me when I say this, if I miss my optimum opportunity because of you…you will truly understand the meaning of true pain. Am I understood?"

Bellatrix nodded and with another wave, the wound at her throat closed, neatly. She stayed on her knees and looked down upon the floor, unwilling to look at me as she delivered the news that she was to impart to me. "My Lord, "she broke off, as if she were trying to get her thoughts together. Lucifer tapped a foot and Bella stiffened again.

"My Lord…we…we…we have a child together."

There was silence for a moment in the room and then I let out a disbelieving chuckle. "I don't have any children. Neither do you. What---?"

"I was young….barely three years out of Hogwarts. Your ideals inflamed me, your power seduced me. You were my leader, everything that I could possibly want in a man. I would have followed you to the ends of the ends of the earth; I would have done anything you asked of me. You know as well as I do that back then our relationship was based more out of lust than actual feeling. So when I fell pregnant, I had no choice. I knew what I had to do. Your path was clear and unwavering…I couldn't do anything to mess it up…"

"Bella ---."

"Remember the six months when I disappeared off of the face of the earth and everyone wondered whether I had already died for our cause? I was in the godforsaken, uncivilized Muggle world, waiting to be rid of my secret. If the child had been born a boy, things might have been different. I would taken him back to you…delivered you an heir…someone that could resume the fight if something may have happened to you. But to my horror and shame, it was a little girl. It mere hours after her birth, snowy Christmas Eve of 1970, when I dropped her off on the steps of the nearest church and disappeared into the night…"

"I have no idea of what happened to her since that night…and neither do I care. She was a mistake … one I sorely wish never happened."

I could only sit there in shock. I had a child…a little girl. Granted, Bella knew me very well. If she had brought back a little girl instead of the preferred boy if I had known of the entire matter, claiming out she was mine, I would have probably snuffed out her life, with no twinge of remorse. At the time, I couldn't have been distracted by a child. Yes, Bella made the right decision getting rid of the whelp. I sighed, closing off of my thoughts once more and looked back down at Bella. "Did you give the child my name?" I hissed, almost paralyzed with anger at the mere thought.

"Her name was Eris. Eris Ophelia. I didn't leave a last name with the note I had left behind. I wouldn't dare grace her with the noble name of Black. As for giving her the name of Gaunt, I thought it would be best not to link her with you with the family name that you're proudest of. "

I nodded, somewhat relieved. "And you don't know what happened to her since then? Fine. What does this have to do with now?"

"Everything." Lucifer said. "I shall pick Eris' story from here. The child didn't spend all that long at the Muggle orphanage. Somehow, by pure luck, a woman by the name of Sarah Prince came in, looking to adopt a child. She had trouble holding her own previous pregnancies to term and thought it was best to stop trying. She found Eris that day, crying in her crib, and immediately took an instant liking to her. While that is not remarkable in of itself, who Sarah Prince was ended up being important…"

I merely looked at Lucifer, the name of Prince sounding familiar to my ears. I couldn't quite place it though…

" It turned out that Sarah, a Muggle, was married to an Adrian Prince." Lucifer looked at me for a moment, as if expecting me to make the connection quicker. "Adrian was a Squib, a victim of pureblood interbreeding and … of course, the younger brother of an Eileen Prince…"

" Severus Snape's mother?" I choked out, anger flooding me in waves as the name finally sunk into my brain. "That traitor? He cost me everything with his deception. He was on Dumbledore's side the entire time…all because of that mudblood bitch Lily Evans Potter. How I took great pleasure in watching as Nagini sank her teeth into his throat, killing him. Now to know…to know…his uncle…his uncle…had my d---."

"There is no use in screaming about it now, Riddle." Both me and Bella winced at the use of the despised name. "Eris was an unhappy child, as dark and evil as one could possibly be," Lucifer broke off, a small smile crossing his face, "considering whom her birth parents were, I'm not all that surprised. When Sarah finally gave birth to a living girl, Eris took great glee in torturing her in every way imaginable, all because of her jealousy. There were times that Adrian wanted to give up on her…send her back…but Sarah would hear nothing of it. Her precious baby girl…she just couldn't do it."

Lucifer looked at me with a smile on his face as he thought about the torture that my daughter must have inflicted on that family. "Mere weeks after Harry Potter defeated you that Halloween night, Eris lost her shaky grasp on her uncontrollable magic and set her home ablaze. For a reason only known to her, she trapped the entire family…her parents, her sister and newly born brother, in the third floor master bedroom with her. By the time people came along to put out the blaze, the whole family was gone."

"She was going to join Slytherin ranks at Hogwarts. She was going to meet her only cousin, Severus. She died before all of that came to pass and her dark soul was sent down here for my keeping." Lucifer finished, snapping his fingers sharply. "This is why we are standing here now…"

The door behind Bella creaked open and both Bella and I whipped our gazes toward it in instinctive fear. Two reptilian guards came through, not looking at the trio of us in the room, but taking opposing places on either side of the door. An uneasy sense of anticipation filled the room for a moment and then…and then…she walked in, proud and haughty as her mother as been in life, as dark and dangerous as I had been. It was an unholy combination to be sure…

"Meet your daughter, Eris Ophelia Prince."

I could only stare at her. In terms of looks, she resembled me most of all. Her hair was a thick, solid jet black, and long enough to reach her waist. Ghostly pale, she stared at me through dark, lifeless eyes. I didn't see myself in that gaze, at all. No, that was pure Black intensity and fury. As I continued to stare at her, traces of Bellatrix made themselves known to me…her height for the nine years old she had been at her death was rather remarkable. The shape of her mouth…the angles of her face…yes, that was Bellatrix all of the way.

"I have a decision to make here, obviously." Lucifer said, breaking both me and Bella out of our inspection of our daughter. Eris showed no reaction; honestly, I was ashamed to admit that it alarmed me a little. I had no reason to be leery of my own flesh and blood. "Two souls…one is going back, the other is staying down here for the rest of eternity, never to see the light of day again. What will the choice be?"

"Only two?" I asked, coming back into myself. I prepared myself to fight Bellatrix...I just knew that she was to be my only obstacle.

"Yes. I choose to keep Bellatrix with me." He reached out and brushed a hand against her face. She merely closed her eyes at the touch and to my surprise, he merely healed the burns he had made earlier before pulling away. "She's rather entertaining, if you understand my meaning. It's between you and your daughter. And no, you aren't going to fight her for the honor. It is up to me…unless you don't want it to be…"

"What do you mean?"

He waved a hand and again to my surprise, I found that I was released from my captivity. The chains slid to the floor with a clatter and I looked at my hands, in disbelief. "Exactly what I said. Look at the little murderess you helped create and decide."

There was nothing that was going to stop me from going to extract my revenge…

"I decide …"

"My heir's actual body is about to be born on the surface. You have mere minutes to make up your mind …"

"I decide …"

The words getting ready to slide out of my mouth, I looked into my daughter's dark gaze. I didn't know her…didn't want to know her. She was an obstacle to my destiny…she would prevent me from destroying my worse enemy. I had a chance to correct a horrid wrong…being reborn was something I had never thought of in my wildest dreams. This was the opportunity of a lifetime…I had to take my chance….

"Five."

But she was my daughter.

"Four."

She wouldn't know what to do with the power she would be granted. I would. I wouldn't repeat my past mistakes.

"Three."

My life was over. Maybe, it was time for hers to begin.

"Two."

One of us was finally going to be free. Her or me?

"One."

Making a decision, I reached out and grabbed her cold, small hand, knowing instinctively that I had made the right choice.

White, blinding light engulfed us and I could feel Eris's hand clench tightly against my own as she finally showed a reaction.

Her or me? We will soon see.

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**Additional A/N**: Please don't kill me. The final chapter will have all of the answers. Question to readers who care to answer: Who do you think I sent back and what set of parents do you think I had them 'reborn' to? I have already made up my mind as to who/what parents but I'm curious to hear differing opinions. As posted before, I will try to post the final chapter in a month's time. Thanks for reading and feel free to review.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer****:** None of the Harry Potter characters are my property. Only the plot of this story and some OC's belong to me. The HP universe belong to J.K. Rowling (thank goodness, she wrote the books…she's relieved me of hours of boredom.) and are distributed by Scholastic Press, a division of Scholastic Inc., at least here in the United States. Since I have taken the time to write this disclaimer, there should be no reason anyone should decide to sue me.

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**A/N**: _Just like with 'Shattered Illusions', I have no excuses for this one. Even after a virus took out the hard drive (to the extent of the whole computer having to be trashed; being that I can't afford a new desktop at the moment, I'm now using the Eee Seashell netbook that I had gotten for Christmas for my online/writing endeavors), I still had a draft copy of this written down on notebook paper, waiting to be typed up on another computer and easily posted to this site._

_Anyways, here is the third and final chapter of "Broken Immortality." Hope that anyone who comes across it enjoys it. Feel free to review and thanks for reading._

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"**Broken Immortality"**

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"Mrs. Weasley! Don't push yet!"

"It's Granger – Weasley, you stupid cow! How many times do I have to tell you that! And I'm trying not to!"

"Hermione. That wasn't called for."

I knew well and good that I was being totally unreasonable but considering that I was trying to push out something that was threatening to split me clean in half, I guess they shouldn't have expected me in a reasonable, polite mood. I struggled as hard as I could to keep the Healer's words in mind. It was a close thing, though; the excruciating pain from stupidly deciding to endure natural childbirth threatened to make me completely lose my mind. My magic was also bearing the brunt of my decision; things were breaking apart all around the room and furniture that wasn't firmly affixed to the floor moved feet from where they originally were.

Bright lights from the diagnostic spells that they were casting only served to disorient me further and I threw out my hand in search of my husband, hoping that he would be my anchor in my sea of pain-drenched delirium. It shouldn't have been much surprise to me that he was in full – fledged rant mode…probably a reaction to him feeling completely helpless about the entire situation.

"I knew we should have gone to St. Mungo's." A full – fledged scream from me cut him off and he gave me a panicked look before wiping stray curls away from my face. "We should have -."

I could barely hear one of the Assistant Healers snarl at Ron as another series of lights brightened the air. "Considering that your eldest daughter's birth didn't go all that smoothly either, I don't know what either of you were thinking when you made this decision. Children born of Muggleborn – Pureblood unions don't always have an easy go of it when they decide to make their appearance in this world."

"I really…really need to push." I moaned, looking blearily at the Chief Healer, Healer Sarsi Thornton, sitting between my legs. She tried to give me a reassuring smile before refocusing her attention back on the matter at hand. _This cow really needs to work on her bedside manner. That didn't even reassure me in the least; if anything, it made me even tenser. Oh, Merlin, I have to get this child out of me…NOW!!_

"Let's see how things are progressing, Mr. and Mrs. Weasl --." At my low growl, she gave me a sheepish smile. "Mrs. Granger – Weasley. I'm sure that the both of you are just as anxious to meet your new little one as they are to meet you."

With a quick flick of her wand, some of screen … _reminds me of a Muggle holographic screen, straight out of a science fiction book … _appeared in between my gaze and the Healer's. What she saw there must have didn't reassure her in the least because she let out a muffled curse before waving over and whispering urgently to one of her assistants.

"What's going on? Is something wrong with the baby?" I immediately asked, sharp clarity returning to me in the face of danger. Ron grabbed my hand in a tight grip, in a silent attempt to reassure me.

"I don't want you to become unduly alarmed. I really need the both of you to stay calm for the baby's sake. The less stress, the better off everyone will be."

"What's going on?" I bit out, trying to keep as calm as possible while resisting every urge I had to push. _I need to know what was happening. What were they keeping from us?_

The Healer took a deep breath and said entirely too bluntly for my tastes," Not only is the baby breech; the cord is looped, loosely though around the child's neck. Hence, the reason that I need the both of you to remain as calm as possible…"

I barely resisted the urge to let panic overwhelm me and I nodded, tightly. "Do anything that you have to do," I said, drawing up every bit of Gryffindor courage I could muster from deep within myself. "Drug me, knock me out, etc. Just save our baby…_please_."

The Healer took one long, considering look at Ron's grave face and our intertwined hands and nodded, tightly. "Mr. Weasley, you are welcome to stay and support your wife but I really must stress that you stay calm, no matter how much you may feel the need to interfere. We can't do our work effectively, if we have to worry about a hysterical father as well."

"I'll stay and I will try to keep the both of us as calm as can be reasonable. This is our child that you're talking about here." Ron said, in the most serious tone he could manage.

"Good."

With that, she flicked her wand once more over my stomach. The holographic screen widened and at the same time, a deep, warming yet numbing sensation crept over my entire midsection. I took a deep breath in order to quell my steadily rising panic and I squeezed Ron's hand, hoping that he would find some way to sooth me.

"Hermione, look at me." Ron's reassuring tone made me momentarily snap out of my worrying to look at him. "Everything will be fine. Yes, we will probably look back at this day with a mixture of both happiness and misery but --."

I couldn't help but let my thoughts flash to the unthinkable. "But what if -?"

"Don't let yourself think that way. Just focus on our main goal here; our second child. A healthy, bouncing Weasley boy… just like you've been saying that we're having ever since you entered your third month. I'm sure that Mother knows best…it wouldn't be all together smart to bet against the brains of the family. However, I would be just as ecstatic if we had another girl."

He broke off, a gentle smile crossing his face. "Harry and Ginny would be pleased as punch if we did have another girl…one more close to little Lily's age."

I couldn't help but smile softly at the mention of Harry and Ginny's only daughter. Even at four months of age, little Lily Luna Potter was a little hellraiser. She _always keeps her parents on their toes by being a serene angel during the day and a holy terror at night. She keeps her brothers in a constant state of flux by one moment, playing with them, cool as cucumber and then in the next, acting like they are her worse enemies. I told both Harry and Ginny that she was destined for Slytherin ranks…they refuse to believe me. When it does happen, I'm not going to rub it in their faces by telling them that I had told them so years earlier…_

"Mrs. Granger – Weasley?"

"Yes?" I asked, hurriedly." Is everything fine now? Can I pu--?" My question was abruptly cut off as a hard contraction wracked my body. I could have sworn that I actually saw stars from the intensity of the pain and squeezed Ron's hand tightly enough to elicit a quickly muffled groan of pain.

"Yes. A couple of more pushes should do the trick." The Healer waved her wand and some of the effects of the spell she had cast on me wore off. "Almost there…"

"Ron!!!"I screamed as another hard contraction slammed into me. I bore down as hard as I could; sobbing and swearing the entire time. The pressure was killing me. _I have to get this godforsaken baby out of me._

"Come on, sweetheart. We're almost there."Ron muttered, pressing a kiss against my sweaty forehead. I dearly wished that I had my wand on my person at the moment; I would have cursed him for the silliness of that remark but the rational side of my brain told me that there was no need to earn myself a trip to Azkaban for the murder or my husband; he was only trying to help me the best way he knew how.

"One more push. I can see the top of the head!" The Healer crowed, happily. "One more big one!"

"ARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!"

There was an abrupt release of pressure…an overwhelming sense of completion…and then….silence.

"What—"I began to ask before the last of my energy reserves left me and I slumped back on the bed, exhausted.

"The baby –."Ron said, sharply." It isn't scr …"

There was a loud smack as the Chief Healer hit the baby's bottom as well as its back…and then, a loud, indignant scream of rage filled the room. The tension in the room disappeared at the piercing howls and Healer Thornton chuckled, before handing the baby over to one of her assistants to be cleaned up.

"You had one of those eerily silent babies. They never fail to scare the Merlin out of me when I encounter them."

I nodded, wincing as one of the last contractions swept over me. _Afterbirth…how lovely._ "Gave all of us a good scare."

Moments later, the assistant came walking up to the both of us, with our still fussy new bundle of joy bundled tightly in what else in a Gryffindor home… a red and gold blanket.

"Congratulations to the both of you. You have a healthy baby ---."

W*W*W*W*W*W*W*W*W

At six seconds past 6:06 P.M on June 6, 2008, my life began anew.

"Girl."

It was amazing how the actual moment of one's birth could change everything. How the actual second where one pulls in their first, gasping breaths of life could mean both nothing and yet mean everything at the same time. Perhaps, I could just be overanalyzing the entire thing…perhaps…

Good grief, it was just the moment of one's birth … hardly a momentous occasion. Thousands of people go through this every solitary day; hundreds of them don't make it.

I guess it is because of who I am that makes me want to crow about my victory and at the same time, my freedom. I mean, it's not every day that Lucifer, himself, can override angelic edict and snatch an innocent soul into the fiery pits of Hell. I guess I should feel just terrible about the loud, bleating screams of the soul I had just replaced … but I don't.

Why should I?

"Girl!" was the first words that I heard. Grateful that I, at least, retained some knowledge of the language I had been born originally listening to, I let the tone of voice wash over me. _Obviously, a man. More than likely, he's my new father._" I honestly thought it would be a boy."

There was brief silence as something was stuck in my ears and then, I could hear more clearly. Too bad that I couldn't protest about the indignity of being jostled around like a bag of flour…it was bad enough that their conversation, to my sensitive ears, sounded more like a band drumming their way through my head rather just mere words.

"I couldn't specifically see exactly what sex she would be. What appeared to be, at first glance, male genitalia was just a strategically placed kneecap." a female voice said, placing me in the hold of someone who smelled like both roses and leather at the same time. The combination didn't bode well for my nose; before I could even sense it was coming, a loud sneeze erupted out of me and the person holding me let out a soft laugh.

"You're a pretty little lass." My new father's voice washed over me from above. I could feel someone else, a woman judging by the soft touch; brush a gentle finger against my cheek.

"Come on…open your eyes for your mother."

None too keen on opening my eyes when I just knew there was something out there waiting to blind me (_Hell left its scars on me…I won't forget so easily)_, I nonetheless did what I was told. I think the woman holding me…my mother, I told myself once again…could somehow sense that what I was thinking because just as I was hesitantly opening them, her shadow started to fall over my face, serving as a shield of sorts.

It took me a while to focus entirely but the first thing that I saw was loose clumps of curly brown hair. As I continued to study her, I took notice of her friendly, sparkling brown eyes and considering the trauma she had just endured in getting the body that I'm now linked to out of her, her relatively even complexion. _All in all … a rather plain, common woman._

"Look, Ron, she has your eyes." She muttered, smiling down upon me.

There was a murmur of conversation and then, the other woman I had heard before spoke up. "What are you going to name her?"

The quiet contemplation that I had been lazily drifting in was rudely snapped by that, on first appearances, innocent question. _What does she mean, what is my name going to be? It will be what it had always been…Eris. This woman clearly doesn't know of whom she is dealing with, the insolent cow…_

My mother brushed a finger against my cheek, obviously thinking. "Since we thought that we were having a boy, we had only foolishly gone over boy names. Hugo Ronald was our choice." My mother said. "Perhaps, something like Helen? It was my grandmother's name, after all."

_Helen?_ _Oh, no._ I obviously showed my displeasure at that classless name by letting out an indignant squawk. My mother looked down at me in surprise, before chuckling softly.

"I guess she didn't like that one, eh, Hermione?" My father chuckled.

"I know. What shall we call you, little one?"

_I won't be foolish enough to assume that mere moments after my rebirth, I would have any control over the very thing that killed me in the first place. But that is not going to stop me from trying. I won't let this woman erase who I was…who I am … from existence as though I didn't even matter in the first place. I won't stand for it._

Reaching down within myself to access a part of myself that didn't even activate in my previous life until I was nearly four, I tried my best to keep my eyes focused on my mother, in an effort to sway her mind to my point of view. In one aspect, I would say that I did have some success; her eyes did go a bit hazy and unfocused as I, temporarily, got a good hold.

In another way, it didn't work worth a damn. My mother's own magic, or just plain old stubborn will, not thrilled on being manipulated even by her own supposed flesh and blood, interfered and she snapped out of it with a ragged breath, to my complete and utter annoyance. However, I guess that I should have not thrown in the towel quite quickly; I didn't notice her staring blankly into space for a moment, eyes dull, before saying in a completely lifeless tone, "Delilah. Her name shall be Delilah Arielle Granger Weasley."

There was silence in the room when my mother made her pronouncement; I didn't even make a peep, myself. _Not a bad choice; I can live with that one._ Of course, my father had to break it with his nonsense. "Delilah? I thought that you couldn't stand that name. Something about a bully you had in school…"

"Things change." My mother said, shrugging, still speaking in that same lifeless tone." I just know that Delilah is a perfect name for her. A perfect name for a perfect child."

The Healers looked at each other before the Chief one waved a hand and a piece of parchment appeared, floating in the air above me.

"If you say so, Mrs. Granger – Weasley." She said, before giving my father a strange look. He could do nothing but shrug his shoulders, just as confused as she was.

A loud, booming voice effectively startled me into crying so loudly in fright that my mother clutched me closer, obviously fearful that I was going to tumble right out of her arms. "Delilah Arielle Granger Weasley, Halfblood. Born June 6, 2008 at 6:06 PM, six pounds and six ounces to Mr. Ronald Bilius Weasley, Pureblood and Mrs. Hermione Jean Granger- Weasley, Muggleborn. Spare Bedroom - 64 St. Juliana Place, Chudley, Devon. Birth has been recorded at St. Mungo's. Signed and dated by Chief Healer Sarsi Thornton."

With another wave, the piece of parchment and the booming voice disappeared. Before I could even attempt to gain my bearings on what had just occurred, a loud, buzzing sound erupted around me and before I could show a reaction in terms of crying out in both fear and displeasure, a male voice made its presence known…in the recesses of my mind.

_Delilah, eh? Born to the two people my worst enemy wouldn't expect to see the ultimate threat coming from…how simple and thoughtlessly evil is that? I know now at this very moment that I made the right choice. My time has passed. It is time for you to do what you never managed in life…truly live. I'm sorry that I won't be able to get to know you now and how I regret that that I didn't know you as Eris, my … daughter. But now is not the time to express regrets about things that neither one of us can change. _

_All I ask is that you avenge me… make Harry Potter and everyone else who stood against me pay for what they have done… to us…to our family. Do … what…I failed at accomplishing. Just…_

I couldn't help break in, knowing what he was trying to say. _ I can do what you ask of me. Doing no less is not an option; you truly just gave up everything for a child of your body and soul that you didn't even know existed. I don't know if you thought there was debt involved or not; all I know is you have repaid me in a way that I will forever be grateful for. _With that thought from me, the loud buzzing ceased and the connection between me and the man who had made the sacrifice that none who had known him would have thought him capable of making… one who would eternally be trapped in Hell because of it...was broken.

It took me a moment to reacclimatize myself to my surroundings. Obviously, the last remaining effects of my spell against my mother wore off; my father must have said something funny in order to cause both my mother and the Healers to laugh merrily as they began to gather their things in order to depart. I was too busy immersed in my own thoughts to pay much attention to the obvious happiness of my new family.

_I will bide my time until I can do what must be done. I will not over extend myself like the last time I was here. I won't let my innate rage at my circumstances cost me this… another shot at something I had lost so long ago. Since six, obviously, is an important number to me, I will give them at least that much…six years of supposed peace and prosperity…and then … I will do what I have to. Choice…what choice? I am who I am. And that is the way that it is going to be._


End file.
